Fence-post.



No. 783,355. PATENTED FEB. 21,1905. A. D. BENHAM.

FENCE POST.

APPLICATION TILED FEB. 20, 1904.

WITNESSES I IWVEWTOR 7;? (5? d/fl: 91 M 7 70% B I I V- y @a/e/ae/z/ 776M;

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Patented February 21, 1905.

PATENT Orricn.

ARTHUR I). BENHAM, OF MILFORD, MICHIGAN.

FENCE-POST.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 783,355, dated February 21, 1905.

Application filed February 20, 1904. Serial No. 194,469.

To on whom, it may concern:

Be it known that I, ARTHUR D. BENHAM, a citizen of the United States, residingat Milford, county of Oakland, State of Michigan, have invented a certain new and useful Improvement in Fence-Posts; and I declare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description of the invention, such as will enable others skilled in the art to which it pertains to make and use the same, reference being bad to the accompanying drawings, which form a part of this specification.

This invention relates to fence-posts, and has for its object an improved post of plastic material in which there is embedded a protected nailing-stripf I am aware that heretofore posts have been made of plastic material in which there was embedded a longitudinal strip or in which there were inserted plugs to hold the nails or staples that secured the Wires or rails of the fence to the post; but in such constructions the wood of the strip or of the plug was exposed to the weather and rain and storms and would consequently shrink or'swell and become loose or perhaps swell to such an extent as to break the plastic material in which it was embedded, or, if not, it soon rotted and became useless as a holding means for nails or staples. These are objectionable features which I have overcome by the device shown in the drawings and described hereinafter.

In the drawings, Figure 1 is a front eleva tion of a post. Fig. 2 is a front elevation of a post strengthened Where it emerges from the ground. Fig. 3 is a cross-section at the line 00 w of Fig. 1. Fig. 4 is a perspective of the protective coating.

The body part of the postA is made of any suitable plastic material, preferably hydraulic cement and sand and made .in any suitable convenient or desired shape. In one face of the post is embedded the side flanges of a channel-bar of metal, of which the web part 6 extends along the post on the outside surface thereof. The side walls 3 reach back into and are embedded in the material of the post. Preferably the channel-bar is flanged at its edges. In the cavity of the channel-bar is inserted a tightly-fitting strip 2 of wood. Neither the channel-bar nor the wood covered by it reach to the top of the post, but stop short thereof. This channel-bar forms a metal covering and a protection for the strip of wood that is contained within it and prevents the strip of wood which engages tightly within the channel from splitting when nails are driven into the wood. The metal covering may be of quite light sheet metal and should be itself of a metal which is somewhat protected from or not liable to destructive action from storms and rain. Galvahized iron is a very suitable material for the purpose. The strip of metal and the inclosed strip of wood serve to strengthen the posts, which may be made considerably lighter than an ordinary plastic post not thus strengthened. The strip of wood holds the nails or staples used to fasten the wires or the rails W to the post of the fence, and an ordinary staple driven into the wood if long enough to pass through the wood is clenched or bent against the material of the post behind the wood strip and is securely held. I prefer to use a staple that is long enough to only turn a small portion of the end, as a very short clench holds with sufficient firmness and a staple with only a short clench can be drawn without tearing the wood to such an extent as to prevent redriving a staple in the same hole. The light sheet-metal coating 3 is punched at the time the fence is built with holes 7 and 8 for the insertion of the legs of the staple.

In the form shown in Fig. 2 the post itself is strengthened by a sheet-metal ring or coating 9, placed as a band around the entire post at that part of it which is intended to be at the ground-line, with part of the band below the ground-surface and part of it above, thus furnishing to the post strength at the pointwhere there is the greatest liability of fracture. Such a band made from sheet metal seamed together is placed in the mold at the time the plastic cement is poured into it and becomes an integral part of the post.

What I claim is 1. In a post, the combination of a plastic body, a channel-bar having the width of the web narrower than the width across the opening of the channel, a strip of wood engaging closely in the channel, and the wood and the channel-bar flush with the surface thereof, IO channel-bar being embedded in the plastic substantially as described.

material with the Web of the channel exposed, In testimony whereof I sign this specificasubstantially as described. tion in the presence of two witnesses.

5 2. In a post, in combination with a plastic body, a longitudinally-extending channel-bar ARTHUR B ENHAM provided with flanges, a strip of Wood filling Witnesses: the channel of said bar, both being embedded MAY E. KOTT, in the plastic material with the web of said CHARLES F. BURTON. 

